Seal for shaft bearings



Oct. 4, 1932. A Q DURDIN, JR 1,880,911

SEAL FOR SHAFT BEARINGS F11-ed Nov. 5. 1928 Patented Oct. 4, 1932 i PATENT OFFICE AUGUSTUS C. DURDIN, JR., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS SEAL4 FOR SHAFT BEARINGS.

Application led November 3, 1928. ,Serial 110.316,939.

This inventionrelates to seals for shaft bearings, andhas reference more particularly to the bearings of shafts of bilge pumps Y and other submerged pumps. The principal Object of the present invention is to provide a novel assembly for the seal, whereby the same may be held against displacement upon the impeller while assembling the impeller moved from the shaft.

Another object is to provide a seal which may be employed between the impeller and the case of a submerged pump to guard against leakage to the shaft bearing. In accordance with the present invention, the seal is mounted on the impeller hub against accidental disconnection therefrom, whereby the impeller may be detached from the shaft without any danger that the seal will become detached. l y

With these and other objects and advantages in View, this invention consists in a seal for shaft bearings held against accidental removal on the hub of a pump impeller. It further consists in a seal for sealing the joint between the impeller and pump case, whereby leakage tothe shaft bearing is prevented.

It further consists in the several novel features hereinafter fully set forth and claimed. The invention is clearly illustrated in the drawingv accompanying this specification in which- Figure l is a central vertical longitudinal section through a pump with the hanger pipe o and shaft y partly broken away and illustrating a simple embodiment of the invention' Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmental central vertical section showing the impeller partly detached from the shaft; and

Fiv. 3 is a detail horizontal section through the s aft and showing the hub and seal in plan, the line of section being indicated at 3-3 in Fig. 1.

Referring to said drawing, which illustrates a simple embodiment of the present invention, the reference character 5 designates the hanger pipe of a bilge pump or other submerged pump, which hanger plate is usually suspended from a Hoor or basin plate with the shaft and when the impeller isl re- (not shown) On the lower end of the hanger pipe is secured the pump ease 6 in which an impel-ler` chamber 7 having an inlet 8 and a liquid passage 9 connected with a discharge pipe (not shown), asis customar` The lower side of the case is closed yby a head 6 bolted thereto.- vIn the chamber v7 is an impeller 10 having in its lower wall 17a an eye llthrough which liquid may pass into the impeller from the inlet. y

The chambered part of the case is connected to the hanger pipe by a neck portion 12 having a flange 4lsecured to the pipe and a flaring part 14 which connects the neck portion 12 with the chambered part of thecase. 65 ln the neck portion 12 is secured a bearing bushing 15 for the impeller shaft 16. On one wall 17 of the impeller 10 is a hub 18 which projects upwardly from the wall 17 and extends into the cavity contained in the Haring part 14, and is formed with a tapered hole 19 for the reception of the tapered end 20 of the impeller shaft 16. The impeller shaft may be keyed to the hub by a key 21 and may be additionally secured thereto by a screw v22 75 threaded in the-end of the shaft and having a head bearing against the underside of the wall 17 of the impeller.

The hub may be tapered part way as at 23 and its upper end may be made cylindrical as at 24, and, conveniently, the neck portion l2 may contain an annular Harige 25 surrounding the cylindrical end 24 of the hub. The lower face of said flange is flat, whereby the seal (hereinafter described) may have a close contact therewith.

Surrounding the hub 18 below the flange 25 is a hardened steel ring 26, the upper face of which is ground Hat and bears against the flat facel of the flange 25. The ringI 26 is 90 formed with an internal cylindrical face 27 spaced away from and sur-rounding the cylindrical face of the hub 18. In the drawing, the ring 26 is shown as formed with an annular flange which contains the internal cylindrical face 27.

Held under compression between the internal' cylindrical face 27 of the ring 26 and the cylindrical face of the hub is a rubber or other resilient seal ring 28 which grips 100 the hub tightly, and below the seal ring is a flanged washer or other shoulder 29 against which bears one end of a coiled spring 30, the other end of which bears against the upr face of the impeller wall 17. The ruber seal ring 28 has a peripheral rib 28a interposed between the anges of the ring 26 and washer 29, whereas the sides of the seal ring are free, thereby permitting the seal ring to move with the hub in case of any oscillation or reciprocation of the shaft. The seal ring is held under compression between the hub and the internal faces of the flanges of the ring and washer. As shown, the wall 17 of the lmpeller isformed with an upstand inannular flange lspacedaway from the hu 18 to form an annular channel or groove therebetween, and the lower end of the spring 30 is contained in said groove.

In the form of seal shown, the flanges of thecring'26 and washer 28 grip `the rib of the seal ring betweeny them and the spring holds the ring 26 in close Contact with the flange 25. The sealing members rotate with the shaftand because of the close lit between thering 2,6 and flange 25 and between the seal ring and hub, a leak proof joint is provided between the chamber of the case 6 rand the bearingl bushing, thereby guardingV against the passage of liquid to the clearance space kbetween the shaft and bearing bushing.

Above the 'sea-ling members and in close proximity thereto is a shoulder or stop memer 32 for limiting the outward thrust of the spring whenthe impeller isdisconnected from the shaft. Said shoulder is here shown in the form of a split ring held by its own elasticity in a.l circumferential'groove 33 formed in the cylindrical face of the hub. It will be observed that when the parts are assembled, the sealing members are pressed down from the retaining ring 32 by reason of the engagement of the ring 26 with the fiange 25. Whenever the impeller is disconnected from the shaft, the retaining ring 32vacts as a stop or shoulder preventing the spring from forcing the sealing members off the hub.

In assembling the pump, the shaft is placed in the bearing bushing 15 and the impeller 10, with the sealing members held in place thereon by the retaining ring 32, is inserted into the pump case and fastened to the pump shaft. The 'i sealing rings are consequently forced down from the retaining ring as they encounter the flange 25, and said sealing rings are thereafter held in close contact with the fla-nge 25 by the spring 30, thereby preventing leakage from the interior of the pump case to the bearing bushing. It will be understood that after the impeller has been secured in place, the head of the impeller case is bolted in place. It will be observed from the above, that the impeller may be secured to the pump shaft, with the sealing members in place on the impeller, and that the impeller may be disconnected from the shaft without any danger that the sealing members will become disconnected from the impeller and lost.

More or less variation of the exact details of construction is possible without departing from the spirit of this invention. I desire, therefore, notl to limit myselfto the exact form of the construction shown and described, but intend, in the following claims, to point out all of the invention disclosed herein.

I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

- 1. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combination with an impeller having a hub portion, a shaft for said impeller and a member in which said shaftis journaled, of a sealing member surrounding the hub and rotating therewith, said sealing member being spring pressed against the member in which the shaft is journaled, and a shoulder on said hub located beyond the effective position ofI the sealing member and arranged to retain said sealing. member on the hub against the outward thrust of the spring when the impeller is disconnected from the shaft.

2. In a'seal for shaft bearings, the combination with an impeller having a hub projecting laterally therefrom, a shaft upon which said impeller is removably secured, a bearing bushing in which said shaft is journaled, and a case in which said bushing is secured, of a sealing member surrounding the hub and rotating therewith, said sealing member being spring pressed in an outward direction from the impeller and held in close contact with said case, and a shoulder on said hub located beyond the effective sealing position of the sealing member and arranged to retain the latter on thehub against the outward thrust of the spring when the impeller is disconnected from the shaft.

3. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combi-y nation with an impeller case, an impeller therein having a hub projecting laterally therefrom, a shaft upon which said impeller is removably secured and a bearing in said case for said shaft, the case being formed With a recess at one end of said bearing adapted to receive the adjacent end of the hub, of a sealing membersurrounding/the hub and rotating therewith, one element of said sealing member having la flat ground face contacting with a fiat face of the impeller case, another element of said sealing member being compressible and frictionally held between the first mentioned element of the sealing member and the shaft, a coiled spring surrounding the hub and bearing against one element of the sealing member and against the impeller, and a shoulder on the hub located on that part of the hub entering the recess in the case and beyond the effective position ofthe sealing member and adapted to retain the latter on the hub against the outward thrust of the spring when the im-` peller is disconnected from the shaft.

4. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combinationwith an impeller case, an impeller therein having a hub projecting laterally therefrom, a shaft upon which said impeller is removably secured and a bearing in said case for said shaft, said case having a flat annular face surrounding the shaft and a recess extending in from said flat face and adapted to receive the adjacent end of the hub, of a sealing' member surrounding the hub and rotating therewith, one element of said sealing member having a flat ground face contacting with the flat face of the impeller case, another element of said sealing member being compressible and frictionally held between the first mentioned element of the sealing member and the shaft, a coiled spring surrounding the hub and bearing against one element of the sealing member and against the impeller, and a split ring removably secured upon the free end of the hub at a place beyond the effective position of the sealing member and adapted to retain the'sealing member on the hub against the outward thrust of the spring when the impeller is disconnected from the shaft.

5. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combination with an impeller case, an impeller therein having a hub projecting laterally therefrom and formed with a cylindrical end portion, a shaft upon which said impeller is removably secured, a bearing bushing for said shaft secured in the case, said case being formed with a housing enclosing the hub and having in its interior a flange surrounding the end of the hub and defining a recess, of sealing rings surrounding the cylindrical part of the hub and rotating therewith, one of said sealing rings having a ground flat face contacting with a flat face of said. flange, a coiled compression spring surrounding the hub and arranged to hold said ring in close Contact with said flange, and a removable shoulder on said cylindrical portion of the hub located in said recess and beyond the effective position ofthe sealing rings and adapted to retain the latter on the hub against the outward thrust of the spring when the impeller is disconnected from the shaft.

6. A seal for shaft bearings comprising an impeller fornied'with a. laterally projecting hub having a cylindrical end portion, a sealing member surrounding. said cylindrical portion of the hub and spring pressed in an Outward direction. and a split ring removably secured in a circumferential groove located beyond the effective position of the sealing member.

'i'. At seal for shaft bearings comprising a case wall, a rotatory cylindrical member ex` tending through said wall, a flanged seal ring having a flat ground face contacting with a flat face of the case wall, a flanged annular member,and aresilient seal ring loosely confined between saidfianged ring and flanged annular member and having a peripheral rib grippedbetween said flanged ring and -flanged member, and a coiled compression spring ,bearing against said flanged annular member and acting tn hold the flanged seal ring in close con 'c with said case wall. a

8. A seal for shaft bearings, comprising a case "wall, a rotatory cylindrical member extending through said wall, a flanged seal ring having a fiat ground face contacting with a flat face of the case wall, a flanged washer, and a resilient seal ring between the flanged seal ring and Washer and having a peripheral'rib gripped between the flanges of said `seal ring and Washer, the seal ring being held underl compression solely between said flanges and the rotatory cylindrical member, and a coiled compression spring bearing against said washer and serving to hold the flanged seal ring in close contact with said case wall.

9. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combination with a shaft and a member in which said 'shaft is journaled, of an impeller having a hub portion removably secured on said shaft and sealing means rotating with said shaft and including sealing rings and a spring for holding said sealing rings in close contact with the member and the shaft, and means for securing the sealing means on the hub against disconnection therefrom vfhgn the impeller is disconnected from the s ia t.

10. In a seal for shafts, the combination with an impeller, a shaft therefor upon which the impeller is removably secured, and a casing surrounding said impeller, .said shaft being journaled in said casing of sealing means rotating with the shaft and being spring pressed against the casing, and a shoulder removably carried by the shaft and located beyond the eective position of said sealing means and arranged to retain the sealing means on the hub against the outward thrust of the spring when the impeller is disconnected from the shaft.

1l. In a seal for shaft bearings, the combination with a case having a shaft bearing therein, a shaft journaled in said bearing and projecting therefrom, and an impeller having a hub projecting therefrom and removably secured on said shaft, of sprl-ng i pressed seal ring members for preventing leakage through the clearance space between said bearing member and shaft, said seal ring members being locked on said hub and bodily removable and replaceable with said impeller.

12. In a seal for shaft bearings, thecombination with a case having a shaft bearing therein, a shaft journaled in said bearing and projecting therefrom, and an impeller having a hub projecting later-.1115' therefrom, of spring `pressed -sen'l 'ri-ng members surrounding the hub 'and 'frictkouml-1y held `thereon to rotate therewith .and having n rubbing t against Ithe ease Ifo-1' pre iei:ft"i.11g=1eak-age between the euse `and s-hllft, sai-d seal ring members being loeked'on snidhub and bodily removable and Vreplaceable with said, im-

peller. y

AUGUSTUS DURDINATIL 

